Maynard,Our Fat-Tailed Gecko/ 30 Years Together

I was about to run out to pick up crickets for our African fat tailed gecko and then decided to write about him.  He's named Maynard for an English drummer (TOOL?)  He was Liz's 17th birthday present and became ours when she left for UT the following year.  He's a very related easy to care for guy who eats crickets we buy from RIVER and REEF on S 1st.  When we decided to move to Austin we really struggled as to how to get him here (many lizards are confiscated from your pocket by TSA).  So we sent him UPS and he had his own airline ticket.  And he drove around in a UPS truck until Liz's boyfriend at the time retrieved him and sent us a message he was OK.  I have saved the message on my phone...it was a stressful delivery!  And so today when we meet Liz at the Four Seasons to celebrate our 30th Anniversary I am thinking about the children in my life.  The people whom I have had the privilege to bring into the world and orient  to a life I think is important.  Both Josh and Liz are Abe's and my proudest achievements.  They enhance the world they were brought into and contribute so much.  They lead lives of productivity, creativity, benevolence, and have no greed.  They do for others by the jobs they have chosen.  Josh helps people get around our nation's capitol on bicycles: no oil issues, no footprints, no toxic air pollutants, and good health contributions.  Liz takes photos of people and children who benefit from the new Health Care Law.  She brings us photos of lives and environments so far from our own and always manages to find the people who live on the bleachers, but contribute so much.  So while I am dining at one of Austin's finest restaurants, my heart is filled with gratitude for the life I have shared with a truly great man.  Happy Anniversary Abe.